Synthesis, characterization, and in vitro assessment of cytotoxicity for novel azaheterocyclic nido-carboranes – Candidates in agents for boron neutron capture therapy (BNCT) of cancer

Abstract

A series of novel water-soluble azaheterocyclic derivatives of nido-carborane bearing quinoxaline, 2H-imidazole or 1,2,4-triazine moieties were first synthesized in 82–91% yields. The structures of these boron-enriched compounds were confirmed by the data of NMR, IR spectroscopy, and mass spectrometry. To access the toxicity level for these organoboron compounds, the cytotoxicity indexes (IC50) were determined using by the MTT test on both human glioblastoma cell A-172 (IC50 = 150–243 μM) and human embryonic lung cells (IC50 = 424–944 μM) lines. The obtained preliminary results from in vitro analysis enable the synthesized water-soluble azaheterocyclic carboranes to be considered as challenging candidates in the design of agents for boron-neutron capture therapy (BNCT) of malignant tumors.